The Path of a Shadow
by Kal Torak
Summary: PLEASE REVIEW! I suck at summaries. Set between M1 and M2. The Shadow, led by Lewar and her first mate Paradox, have their own paths to meet. Written from Fear, Paradox and Lewar. CHAPTER 9 IS UP! You know how slow I am..
1. Risks

Authour's Note: Ok, chapter 1! more to come in a few days, stay with me, I'm a bit of a slow writer. Now…let us begin! please review it and stuff, to tell me how much it sucks and how much of it I should delete =P So yeah…here it is!

Stalking through the black back streets of the grimy city he now knew was fake, Paradox took great care not to be heard. He knew the agents were ahead, he could sense them growing more confident. Moving with complete stealth, in the shadow filled alleyway, he stood a couple of meters away from them. Making sure all his calculations were correct, but clearing his mind of all doubt at the same time, he leapt up with a flick of his coat to the roof, making sure there was plenty of space between him and the ground of the ally. 

Once certain everything was in position, he cleared his mind of everything except his goal. Although he was only 19, he was an expert at clearing his mind, after going to the temple with his father often before being unplugged. Leaping away into the night, he heard a momentous blast and a massive fireball flew into the air, with burning pieces of black suits flittering up into the air, driven by the extreme heat created by the precision bomb. A grin could be seen on his face from the light of the fireball. 

The phone in his pocket rang as he eventually came to the ground, a few miles away from the explosion. With a swift action that came from reflex, he took it out of his pocket, answered it and was holding at his ear in less than a second.

"Yeah?"

Reflex, the operator answered "Dox, that was some insane shit you did back there! They had no idea. You sure you wanna come back though? She's pissed you know"

"Yeah, I thought she would be, but I wanted to try that out, and they were trying to track down a new suspect, a dude that's awakening."

"You can tell her that, she's by your chair, waiting for you to get unplugged"

Paradox winced. Lewar, Captain of the Shadow, was a great captain as well as friend, but hated it when Paradox did things she called "stupid life wasting risks", which he happened to do quite often. Lewar was quite young for a captain, only 20. Not the youngest Captain in Zion, but still very young by most standards. She was devoted to her ship, her crew and her duty. She had a special bond with Paradox, as they were released a week between each other and were friends in hacker circles, and had been reunited in Zion.

"Ok, man, you got an exit for me?"

"Yep, Keen and Manor, a public phone."

"Thanks dude."

"Why do you keep calling me that?"

"Old habit, I guess."

Hanging up the phone, he walked to the intersection where the phone box was, his ticket home. Sure, the Matrix was home for a while, but the Real World was his true home, where he didn't have to feel paranoid, or worry about the ever frustrating feeling that something just wasn't right, but you couldn't put your finger on. It was like forgetting someone's name, and having it on the edge of your mind for hours, but never getting there until you heard it. Well, Paradox heard it alright. It was Niobe who released him from the Matrix, and he was a member of her crew for a long time, until he bumped into Lewar in Zion, and found out she was building her own ship, so joined up as first mate. Snapping back to what was happening around him, he saw the phone box in the distance, just as it started to ring.

As he walked up to it, he was now aware of everything that was around him, down to the smallest detail. He had to be, to survive in his line of work. Picking up the phone, he felt the odd releasing feeling as the socket was taken out of the back of his head, but also the small pang of regret and pain as he came back into reality, where everything was real, especially pain from inside the Matrix.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Lewar, Captain of the Shadow, was waiting next to the still body of her first mate, Paradox, waiting for him to open his eyes. As soon as he did, she undid the plug in his head and stood next to him, with her arms crossed and scowling. 

"What the hell was that?! You were right next to them! You know how sensitive their scanners are, you're so lucky they were preoccupied. I almost think you deserved to be found, pulling off a stunt like that! And another thing, next time yo-"

Paradox put up his hands and cut her off. "Can we continue this somewhere else? I'm really quite hungry. Protecting a potential rebel does that to you."

Her face softened slightly. "A potential?"

"Yeah. Do you think we could continue this in private? It's starting to look like something out of a bad soap."

Indeed it did, as Mace the legendary programmer's had stopped typing as she stood listening, her current duties forgotten. Lewar gave in, raised her eyebrows at Mace who quickly went back to work, and she followed Paradox into the small steel room he called home. Unlike the rest of the crew, he had decorated his quarters with drawings of his friends back in Zion, the rest of the crew, and memories from the Matrix. Lewar looked at them in wonder. 

"These are really good, you're a great artist. I can't believe you never did an art class inside."

"Yeah, well I never started drawing 'til I got out."

Lewar nodded, but didn't say anything. She didn't have to. Everyone who had been unplugged seemed to have a need for a passion, something they could put their emotion into. It could be anything from writing to working. Paradox drew. He drew pictures of the crew, of the ship, and of things he remembered from the Matrix. He was amazing, and could draw every detail just from memory.

Paradox was sitting on his small bunk, putting the finishing touches on a new picture, but she knew he hated it when people looked over his shoulder, so she sat down next to him.

"How did you know they were going after a potential?"

"I could hear them talking about him."

"Who is it?"

"A kid called Tom Murrik, but his real name is Fear."

"How old is he?"

"11"

Lewar's heart sank. He hated the thought of someone so young being chased around by agents, and she knew Paradox did too. She had only been 12 when they were first contacted by the Real World, and he had been 13. 

She shook her head. "That doesn't matter, you still shouldn't have done what you did the way you did. It was too risky. Think of all the things that could've gone wrong! The calculations could've been incorrect, and the building could've collapsed, the agents could've turned around, anything could've happened. You would've had no chance against three agents. Only someone like Neo could take them on."

Dox's eyes shone with admiration at the name Neo, but Lewar was so used to it she didn't notice. Almost everyone in Zion thought of Neo of a sort of God, but one they could see as a real person. Stories of Neo's exploits were legendary, and no one could really remember fact from fiction. All anyone knew was that he was the hero of Zion, and would always remembered as long as humans were free. 

"It's not like it was a pointless act, you probably just saved his life -for now, anyway- but I can't bare to loose a member of my crew. Right now, I don't think I could take anything else going wrong. You're too important right now, we have to tell Zion about this new potential." She paused. "And for the record, it was a pretty good plan. How did you plant those explosives before the Agents came?"

"Well, it was tricky, but I dropped them onto garbage bags while jumping

from one side of the ally to another, while making sure that no one saw me, 5 seconds before they came past."

Lewar's jaw dropped, and then she opened her mouth to scold him again, but he got their first.

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding! I'm not that crazy! I felt them coming about 2 minutes before they came, so I was able to plant them in the perfect spots, so that

no copper-tops would be killed."

She felt much more relieved. "Just tell me next time, OK? You scared the shit out of me!"

"OK. I'm really sorry, Lee. I didn't want to scare you as much as I did those black-suited pains in the arse. I'm not saying I won't do it anymore, it's too damn fun! That and I was only doing my job to piss of those Agents, hit them back." He grinned, and Lewar couldn't help but to grin back.

"I'm going to the rec. hall, you want something to eat?" she asked.

"Yeah, sure, I'm too tired to get up."

Smiling to herself, she got up and moved towards to door, but not without casually glancing at Paradox's work in progress.

A/N: OK! hope you enjoyed that, more is coming, really. so review, please please please, and be HONEST!!!! I don't want to be told "yeah it was great" when you're thinking "what a waste of time…I could be on a matrix message board right now!" so be honest and expect more from me

Torak


	2. Of Bread and Cars

A/N: You guys are lucky to get this!!! NO REVIEWS! Even if you thought it sucked, review it anyway! Just makes an author feel a little better. So anyway, CHAPTER 2!!

And if you're all nice and review my little tale, I might even give you more….

The crew were idly chatting over a bowl of protein mush while Turb0, the resident car fanatic, talking intently about the Hotrod he had inside the Matrix. Paradox wasn't really listening, but thinking about the night before. It had been fun, no doubt about it. Even though he was quite scared of being that close to the Agents, he knew that he had done some good through his actions.

Turb0 was half way through explaining the perfect balance of the front when he was interrupted by a beeping coming from the Core. Reflex quickly rushed off, and soon yelled "Lee, I think you should see this!"

Lewar jumped out of her seat and ran off to Reflex, and didn't return for several minutes.

"We're going in," she said plainly when she came back. Paradox looked at her in surprise. "Dox and I are to see the Oracle."

They were loaded into an old hotel, which was almost always used in trips to the Oracle. Paradox had heard it was the exit that the Nebuchadnezza had used when Neo was first taken to see the Oracle, and were betrayed by Cypher.

They climed into the muscle car that Turb0 had chosen out, leaving Mace at the exit to guard it. Turb0 was able to navigate the busy, narrow streets easily, turning smoothly, and never giving up the chance to rev the massive engine proudly.

Paradox followed Lewar to the Oracle's door without word. They stood outside for a few seconds, looking at each other apprehensively. Then, as Lewar moved to open the door, it was opened from the inside by Aphereal, priestess of the Oracle.

"I was wondering how long you were going to stand outside," she smiled. "Come inside, she's waiting."

They walked in, and Paradox was surprised how _normal_ it was. He could've thought this was the wrong address if it wasn't for the floating soft toys in the living room, being directing by small children. Lewar was directed by Aphereal into the kitchen, and Paradox was told to wait. He stood by the door in his baggy black cargo pants and long jacket. He felt rather out of place, surrounded by these innocent children dressed in white, as if he was bringing violence into their peaceful world. After about ten minutes, Lewar came out, with a confused smile on her face, but it may have been Paradox's imagination, but he thought she had avoided catching his eye.

He heard his name being called from inside the kitchen, and walked in, ducking to avoid the beads. He almost stoped dead in his tracks when he saw the most ordinary person he could ever have imagined. He suddenly felt like laughing out loud as he worked it out. All this normalcy was just a cover to avoid being detected by the machines. Inside, this woman was one of the most abnormal person to have ever lived. There stood an elderly woman with graying hair, a green apron, and old glasses on a chain, slicing pieces of thick, steaming bread with a large knife.

"Its not too hard to understand, kiddo. It's a useful disguise, no doubt there," she remarked in an old, yet wise sounding voice, even with the slang. Paradox was surprised. He thought he didn't say that out loud, but then, he could be mistaken. He had the tendency to say things out loud when he thought he was only thinking them. Never really got him into a good situation.

"Here, take a seat," she said. "I've just baked some bread, and it's still very warm. I'm sure it will make you feel better." Paradox sat down, and took a slice of bread the Oracle offered to him on a plate. She was right, it was so lovely and warm. No matter how real, fresh bread out of the oven would always be good.

"Thank you, you're an excellent baker."

"That I am," she answered. "But I didn't bring you all the way here just to give you something to eat." She continued to slice. "That was quite a stunt you pulled last night. You ought to be more careful. You're to valuable to loose in a random attack on the Agents."

"I'm not that important" he shrugged off. "I don't have a path set down in front of me, or anything, and not much responsibility."

"I'm not talking about a rank, I'm talking about as a person. She cares a lot about you, and she couldn't take loosing you. You're very important to that girl, and however much you fight with it, she's very important to you too." He felt uncomfortable, as she gave him a deep look. Sure, Lewar was a great friend but deep down, past the denial, he thought he had felt something… "And don't go talking about not having a path," she continued. "It's already been set down in front of you, you just didn't know you were following it."

Paradox was surprised by that. He thought only really important, world changing people like Neo, and Trinity, and Morpheus had a path to follow, not 19 year olds on a small ship, that is almost forgotten by the Zion Council until it shows up in the city.

"Don't go thinking like that now, boy," she said, startling Dox again. "No one is too small for a path. How did you think Neo, or Trinity started out? They were never normal, but no one is. They just happen to be less normal than anyone else, right now. And so do you." She noticed the look of disbelief on his face. She put down her knife, and sat down at the table, lighting a cigarette. "Ever wonder how you can tell when Agents are coming? Or how you know exactly what's going to happen before it does?"

"I've always been able to do that. It's just a little hunch I get. And I thought there were quite a few rebels who could feel the Agents sometimes."

"Yes, there are, but only one who can as strong as you can." 

"Neo?"

She nodded. "And what you feel is a lot more than a hunch, kid. You don't see the world without time, you can feel it. Not nearly as well as I can, but I was made for this kind of thing. You were made for something else."

"What?"

"Well, for starters, you'll have to help the One destroy the Agents."

"Help the One?" Paradox laughed. "Neo doesn't need help! There's almost nothing he can't do."

"Exactly. Notice that 'almost' in there? You're helpful ability fills in that 'almost', or at least some of it. There are others who can fill in the rest."

"Others? Who?"

"Trinity, for one. Morpheus, too. One who hasn't yet been freed. And another who is conveniently waiting in the room next door."

"Lewar?!" Paradox almost fell out of his chair.

"You didn't think you could be the only hero here, did you? I believe Turb0 is getting sick waiting downstairs, so you better get moving." Paradox nodded. He didn't know what to say. He was actually to help Neo in the War against the Machines, he was going to be some use to the greatest hero Zion had ever seen, the man to brought hope to every soul in the last city of the humans.

"Oh, and kid?" Paradox turned to face her on his way to the door. "Good luck." 

---------------

Lewar thought Paradox looked a little shaken, but happy none the less. He gave her a warm smile, she returned, and walked back downstairs with her, once again not saying a thing.

"'Bout time!" shouted Turb0 from the driver's seat as they came outside. "I was about to send a search party in there!"

She saw Paradox falter in his step for a moment. "Get down!" he shouted sharply as Lewar saw a familiar flash of blue static, and an Agent replaced the homeless man on the street. Turb0 ,who had fought beside Paradox for a few years, knew to heed his warnings, and ducked instantly just before the head rest of his seat burst into a cloud of gunpowder and stuffing. Paradox and Lewar whipped out guns and bolted for the car, firing at the now appearing Agents. They leapt into the back seat, and Turb0 sped off, with two Agents following them. 

"Where?!" shouted Turb0 as he tried to dodge oncoming traffic.

"Forget the old exit!" Lewar shouted back, as she grabbed her phone and Reflex answered immediately.

"What the hell is going on down there?! All of a sudden, a leisurely stroll turned into a battle!"

"Does Mace know?" The young captain asked urgantly

"Yep, I've just made the call, so she'll be out safe. You, I'm not sure about."

"Any ideas?! Turb0 is driving randomly here!"

The answer came though the phone with the utter most urgency. "Left, now!"

"Left!" she shouted to Turb0.

"Get to the old hangers at the West Airport, hanger 24, I'll be waiting for you there!"

"Got it."

"Good luck, Cap'n, you'll need it!"

With Turb0 driving like a madman, and car drivers turning into Agents, it was a terrifying trip. Both Lewar and Paradox were hanging out the windows, guns blazing at the Agents popping up everywhere, jumping from one body to the next. After Lewar skillfully shot a car into a flip to stop traffic coming from ahead, and then behind, all they had to do was get there before the Agents knew where they were going. Just as they started to relax, a pedestrian turned into an Agent, and fired straight into the windshield. 

Turb0 cried out in pain as glass shattered in front of him, but he was clutching his right arm, blood pouring out. Paradox dived for the wheel, and got the speeding car back into a straight line, just as they burst throughout the security fencing of the airport.

"It's ok, buddy, we're almost there. We're almost home." It sounded like Paradox was trying to reassure himself as much as he was Turb0, but kept driving.

"There, hanger 24!" yelled Lewar, and the vehicle swung around in a screeching halt at the side entrance to the hanger. Inside Lewar could hear the phone start to ring. She shot the door open, and Turb0 made for the phone.

"No!" cried Paradox, but it was too late, Turb0 had just entered the sight of the Agent who was waiting in the shadows. With an enraged cry from both Paradox and Lewar, Turb0 fell to the ground with a dull thud, just before the body of the already dead Agent did with a bullet wound right between the eyes. Paradox stood with his gun pointing straight at where the Agent had waited, smoke coming from his gun. 

They ran to Turb0's side, but it was too late, a bullet had punctured his lung and heart. He didn't have a chance. Not believing what was right in front of him, Paradox checked his pulse, and then looked into his eyes, but they were blank. Overwhelmed with sudden grief and rage, he walked back over to the body that the Agent had occupied, and shot it in the chest, again and again, until Lewar called out.

"Dox! That's not doing anything. The Agent is gone, Turb0 is dead, and we have to use this exit before we end up just like him. Come on, let's go home, and say a IrealI goodbye." She handed the handset to him, and he pressed it against his ear with a last look at Turb0. He disappeared into an awaiting world, and the handset fell. She replaced it on the hook, and it started to ring again. She looked over at Turb0.

"Thankyou, Turb0. You were the best pilot there was."

She faded into the Real World with a metallic pang in her head.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A/N: You like? No Like? which ever, TELL ME IN A REVIEW!! :) if you do, more to come in Chapter 3!! if you don't…..well, I'll probably add it anyway because I can get very bored. BUT REVIEW ANYWAY!


	3. Zion

A/N: ok, this is an….odd chapter. Hope you like it anyway, it's a little long. As always, R&R, and I might make some more! Well, I'll make more anyway, but R&R cos it's fun :)

Thanks to Annika Moss, I'm a fool of a Took 

~~~~~~~~~~

Paradox opened his eyes in the real world to find Reflex standing in front of him with a grave look on his face. Behind him, Mace who had very strong feelings for Turb0, sat on a crate of tools, weeping into her hands.

"Cap't wants to see you in her quarters." he said as he helped Paradox to his feet. Paradox nodded slowly, wiping tears from his eyes that had somehow been spilt in the real world too.

He knocked on Lewar's door, and entered. She was siting on the floor, against her bunk, and he was half surprised to se her crying into her knees. He sat next to her and put a hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him and smiled weakly.

"Are you alright, Lee?" he asked. "Before, you didn't let it get to you at all, you were stronger and more in control that I've ever seen you before."

"Well, let's just call it postponed emotion. I needed to stay in control before, as you weren't."

He blushed, and then felt hot tears forming in his eyes once again, but lifted his head to look her in the eyes, those deep, blue eyes.

"You know it wasn't your fault. There was nothing more you could've done for him," she said strongly.

"I was too slow," he said bitterly. "I should've felt the Agents, I should felt them coming! If I wasn't so slow, Turb0 would still be here!"

"No, Dox, I don't think anything you could've done would've stopped this from happening. She told me…." She trailed off, but drew a breath and continued. "She told me that everything would start today, and if one lost means hundreds found, then so be it, as cruel as it is. I didn't know who was going to be the one lost or when they would die, and she refused to tell me."

He breathed in with regret. "I guess you're right. It's not like it won't be painful. Turb0 is gone, and no matter how much good comes from what happens in the future, this will always hurt."

She nodded, and the pain and sorrow reflected in each other's eyes was so intense Paradox had to look away.

"What did she tell you?" she asked.

"She said I was important," he began slowly. "That my being able to feel the Agents and feel what was going to happen a split second before it did, is a result of us filling the gaps of Neo's abilities."

"Us?"

"Trinity, Morpheus, one other…. and you and I."

Lewar's eye's widened. "You and I are to fight along side some of the greatest hero's Zion has ever known?"

"That's what I gathered. She told me clear enough, but she has a history of having second meanings."

"Did she say anything else?"

"Only that that stunt I pulled last night was too risky, because I was valuable too lose, not just in my role for whatever is meant to happen next."

"She's right you know."

Here we go, thought Paradox. One 'I told you so' coming up.

"You are too valuable. To this ship…" She hesitated on something that had been on the edge of her lips for a long time. "…and to me."

Slowly, she pressed her lips against his. For a moment, Paradox was confused and almost in shock, but then all doubt was gone, as he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her with a passion he had never known was there. After what may have been an age pass by in a second, Lewar gradually withdrew. Paradox could feel an emotion he had never felt before, but could see that Lewar felt it too.

He stood up with out a word, and walked to the Core for his shift on watching the Matrix, feeling both deliriously happy and shrouded with a terrible grief at the same time.

----------------

The crew of the Shadow came back to Zion for the burial of Turb0. The funeral was the same as for every warrior of Zion that had been buried there. The crew dressed in the ships formal uniform, a grey shirt with black pants, and the logo of a person's shadow on their shoulder. On the grave, Lewar placed one of Paradox's drawings, a picture of Turb0 standing next to his two loves, his Hotrod, and Mace.

After the somber burial, the Lewar needed to cheer up and catch up on news, so they headed straight for The Rusted Hull, a tavern for the crews and ex-crews of ships. Nodding to some familiar faces, they sat down with the crew of the Orion, and ordered four glasses. Unfortunately, the only drink available was a strong mix of rum, scotch and vodka, making it very difficult to get down.

"Hey, what's with all the fancy clothes, Lee?" slurred Socket, captain of the Orion. He was usually much smarter than he looked, but after a few drinks, he tended to be a little slow.

"We lost Turb0," answered Lewar shortly.

"Oh God, I'm sorry" he said as his face fell. "I didn't think. He was a good man, and then best damn driver I've ever seen."

"He sure was," said Mace, raising her glass that had just arrived. "To Turb0, who died for the resistance."

"To Turb0, who died like a hero," they replied, the traditional reply to a toast to someone who died in battle.

"So what's the word here?" asked Paradox.

"Well, there's been a lot of rumors about odd Squiddie activity in the area about 9000km south of here, in the thin pipes," answered Gold, gunner of the Orion. Her long blond hair usually caught the attention of young men, and sure enough, two were trying to get her attention in that very bar. Unfortunately for them, she had been married inside the Matrix, and her husband had been killed by Agents while she was being unplugged, and she had stayed loyal to him. "Weak Squiddie signals would reach scanners of ships in that area, and then disappear," she continued. "Unfortunately, all the ships available right now are too large too fit through those pipes. Only 2 ships in Zion can do that."

Paradox and Lewar exchanged glances.

"Looks like we just volunteered," said Reflex. "Council are bound to bring it up while we're there anyway."

"Why are you going to the Council?" inquired Socket.

"We've found a new potential, and we thought we may as well let them know about it."

"They'll be pleased about that, there's been a drought of potentials these days."

"Looks like we're in for a busy few weeks then," said Paradox.

"Seems so," sighed Reflex. "Oh well, it's better than doing nothing, I guess. We better be off again, Cap'n. We're due in front of the Council in fifteen minutes."

"Ok then. Good to see you guys again," said Lewar, shaking the other crew's hands warmly. "Stay out of trouble, Socket."

"I try," he belched.

The meeting with the Zion Council didn't go all that badly. As they expected, they were given the task of examining the odd Sentinel appearances, and the fate of Fear, the new potential, but they didn't really mind. As Reflex said, it's better than doing nothing. To all their relief, Lewar declared that the rest of the evening was theirs to do as they pleased, and that they had to be at the ship at 11:00am the next day.

--------------

Paradox headed straight to his small room that served for accommodation during these short visits, where he changed into a shabby rust coloured T-shirt and baggy black pants, ripped at the knees. He pulled out drawing materials, and started a drawing of the combined crews of the Orion and the Shadow, when Lewar knocked on the door.

"Hey Cap'n!" said Paradox, imitating Reflex's address.

"Hey, Doxxie!" answered Lewar with a grin. Paradox hated that name.

She came in, and they sat on the small bed, with the room lit with half a dozen candles to get rid of the mechainical feeling the neon lights gave off. 

"Are you ok after this morning, Lee?" he asked.

"Yeah. I was more worried about Mace. She really loved him."

"I know."

"Really?"

"I usually had the night watch on the Core, and they had to walk through that to get to each other's rooms," he grinned. "I remember once when Turb0 thought I didn't know he was there, and he crashed into a box off tools. It certainly gave him the fright of his life."

"I always wondered what that big crashing was." She sighed. "I sometimes wonder why I decided to become a captain. I'm not prepared to take the loss of a crew member and a friend, and then remain in command."

"Bullshit. I was the one shooting a dead body of an Agent that wasn't there anymore."

They sat in silence for a while, with nothing but the scratching of Paradox's pencils and the occasional pop from a candle. Lewar was absorbed in some of the works covering the walls. Paradox looked at her for a little while, and then put down his pencil and took her hand in his. She looked a little surprised, but didn't try to remove her hand, so he thought that must be a good thing. 

"Does this count as a 'stupid life wasting risk'?" he asked, teasing her.

"No," she grinned. "But this might." Leaning forward, she kissed him, wrapping her arms around his neck, and Paradox couldn't think of anything else except for how much he loved her, although he probably wouldn't tell her for a while. He never could get the courage to say these kind of things.

Ever so gradually, she withdrew. "We can't go too far, you know. I mean, we do have a ship to run, and quite a few things on our 'To Do' list," she smiled at him. "I came to ask you if you wanted to go visit and Reflex's family. We were all gonna visit them, and I noticed you got along well with his brother."

"Sure," he answered. "I wanna talk to him about the updates in code translation for the construct, he's done quite a bit in that field." They walked outside, into the streets of Zion, hand in hand. Reflex came up to meet them, smiling to himself at the sight of them. He was wondering when something was going to happen between then.

A/N: did I just write that? holy crap, I'm loosing it. *dances in a cirlce* I'M A CRAZY NUT! IM A CRAZY NUT! YAAAAAY!

TRA LI LA LA LI LA!!!!! 

that was odd. ANYWAY! R&R tell my im crazy, make me write more!

*mutters "I can't believe I just wrote that…what's happening to me?!"*


	4. 6 Underground

A/N: Come on, people!!! Review!!! Pleeeaaaaase? You're lucky you got the next chapter, you know. I was so tempted to leave you high and dry, but I'm not that cruel, and I AM that bored. Come on, dudes, someone review!!!!! Come on!!!!!!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter 4: 6 underground

Surprisingly, the crew turned up to the ship on time the next day, and all sober. Some crews had a tradition of getting themselves roaring drunk just before they leave Zion, so they can remain intoxicated for as long as possible. Lewar tried to discourage this, because it was usually hard to operate a ship when you're pilot is off his face, but some occasionally Paradox or Reflex would come aboard a little tipsy.

Everything seemed business as usual as the restocked the ship, and touched it up with some bodywork. When everything seemed ready to go, the crew took a last look at Zion, and set off for the pipes north of Zion, to what Mace called "The Mystery of the Disappearing Squiddies".

After three days on the ship, things were back to normal. Paradox had a smart reply to every comment of Lewar's, and Reflex cheered them up with stories of things he'd seen that day while watching the code, although the absence on Turb0 was painfully obvious. Lewar had to do almost all the flying these days, and got few breaks. Mace could be seen sometimes in Turb0's old quarters, quietly weeping in front of the small plaque Lewar had put there in Turb0's memory. 

Finally, Lewar got signals of mysteriously weak AI signals that tended to disappear about 20 seconds after appeared. There was also the slimmest glimmer of human craft, except it seemed to be tiny, and not giving off energy at all. It was about an hour away from where they were.

"Alright, crew, it's show time!" she said to them while they ate. "We're close. I want plenty of power in the EMP just in case, so we're gonna have to use minimal heat and light. Send Zion our currant position and status, and make sure all stray items won't go anywhere. Let's do this."

They worked hard, and everything was ready, although she had no idea what they were getting ready for. It could be anything. She carefully approached the massive clearing that was meant to be holding a few dozen AI, that came and went as they pleased. She noticed that the closer they got, the more vague the signals were. It made no sense. 

Her curiosity was overpowering. She steered her small ship slowly into the massive opening.

She gasped in awe. They all did.

There were no sentinels. There was no AI at all. Instead, stood a massive diamond, bigger than half of Zion, taking in and broadcasting every signal in a 50 km radius within itself.

"Where are we?" she whispered.

"9040km south of Zion," answered Reflex at her side.

"No, what country did this use to be?"

Reflex checked some charts, and grinned.

"We're in South Africa, in the middle of what used to be a diamond mine,"

"God… it must've been here for decades, centuries, just growing with the pressure of the cold and the air…"

"If we get a sample of it," said Paradox slowly. "We might be able to somehow work out the date." She stared at him. The date had always been unknown, only counted from when they thought Zion was first built, 173 years ago. If the real year could be known, then the history of human kind could be a lot more accurate.

"Lets go get those gas masks then," she half suggested, half ordered, and they were happy to comply, grabbing any tool they could use, like hammers and chisels, and also weapons.

As the hatch opened, she realized that she had forgotten how cold it was. She hadn't gone outside for months, and the cold now sank into her skin, making moving hard. But after 15 minutes of trying to break a piece off a diamond, they didn't feel cold anymore. Reflex eventually lost his temper and shot at the massive stone, sending pieces flying, and accidentally finding the easiest way to get a large enough piece. 

"Lets just get the largest pieces on board and get out of here!" Lewar called to the others, and they looked happy to comply. She suddenly had an odd thought, that what they were taking on board would be worth millions in the Matrix, and the massive stone they were looking at would be worth trillions. Not like that mattered when they were loaded in, as they could create whatever they wanted in the Construct, but she had never been rich….

She pushed the foolish thoughts out of her mind as she settled into the pilot's seat.

"Where to now, Cap'n?" asked Reflex

"Back to Zion. I know it wasn't a long trip at all, but we need to unload this and get the experts on it right away. If there's a chance we could know the date, we should get started right away. This could really make a difference to this world, even if it only means we can say we know what time it is."

-----------------

Paradox was in the Core, monitoring the Matrix for any unusual Agent activity. He was tired, but still excited over yesterday's discovery. They could really change something. He sat back in the chair, thinking about things (Lewar in particular) and smiled.

At first he thought he was just imagining it, but then realized that small beeping sounds in his head set were real, a distress signal from another ship.

"Shit!" he swore softly. He switched the mic on. "This is Paradox of the Shadow. Can you hear me?"

"Thank God!" came the voice on the bad connection. "We need help! We've lost engines, and just used the EMP to get rid of 2 sentinels, but now there are more coming. There isn't enough power in the EMP to take them out."

"How strong is their signal?" he asked urgently.

"As strong as usual. Why?" came the reply.

"Shit! Hang on a second, I'll get the captain." He moved down the hall to Lewar's door. "Lee, we've got another ship on the line!"

"Be there in a sec," came her sleeping reply. 

"It's a distress call!"

She came out quickly and took the headphones.

"Where are you?" She paused as the voice on the other end answered. "That's 20 minutes away from us. How long until the Squiddies?" Another pause. "We're on our way." She gave the head set back to Paradox as she headed for the Bridge.

"'What ship is this?" he asked.

"Oh sorry, I forgot to tell you. This is Tank of the Nebuchadnezzar," answered the voice.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A/N: I AM EVIL!!! AND IT'S FUN!!!! I can see why so many other authors leave suspence, it's just so much fun! Stay tuned, next chapter should come in a week, maybe less. 


	5. The Nebuchadnezzar

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A/N: Excuse me, my readers, but YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!!!!!

I actually got reviews!!!

Agent-Diva, yes, I think I know you from somewhere…say, do you happen to know a place called The Matrix Community? =P Glad you liked it dude, and KEEP WRITING! you're a champ!

Tringirl25, I'm glad my evilness had an effect *evil grin*

AND I'M GLAD PEOPLE ARE ACTUALLY READING THIS!!!!!!!!!!! no reviews can really be un-nerving!!!!

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Chapter 5: The Nebuchadnezzar

Lewar was flying recklessly, she knew she was, but if she didn't get there in time, then humans would have no hope left in the war. Paradox's words about the Oracle's prophesy rang in her head, as she sped up, narrowly avoiding snags on the pipe walls.

"Almost there, take the next pipe on the right," said Mace, who acted as navigator. "There," she said sharply, pointing out the window at the tiny steel ship that had obviously been through a lot.

"Tell them to turn off all power, including communications!" Lewar shouted to Reflex who now had the headset and was sitting in his operator's chair.

"How long 'til they come?" shouted Paradox from next to Reflex.

"1 minute, at most!" shouted Mace, as they set alongside the battered ship called the Nebuchadnezzar.

"Power offline!" yelled Reflex as the ship plunged into a cold darkness. "So is theirs."

"Here they come!" called Mace, as a blur of red eyes and cold metal tentacles came out of a pipe into theirs, and swam through the air towards them

"When I say, Reflex…" said Lewar, getting more and more anxious. "Not yet.…" she called, as the last of the three sentinels came out, and they all activated their weapons and hooks. "Not yet…." 

They heard a clang as one slammed onto their roof. "Now, Reflex, now!" she yelled, and in the Core, Reflex turned the red key with force.

"Take that, motherfuckers!" he cursed at them.

Lewar shivered as the slightly blue tinted force surged around her, getting inside her plugs and giving her an indescribable twitch. The sentinels outside fell with a shower of sparks, and their red eyes faded into a lifeless black.

"Power back online," called a relieved Reflex from the Core as lights and heat came back on. 

"Is the Neb ok?" asked Lewar as she got out of the pilots chair and made her way to Reflex and Paradox.

"Yep, everything's fine over there. They'd like to dock." 

Paradox grinned at her. "What will our answer be, Lee? Should I tell them 'No, we're full'?"

She pushed him gently. "Come on, you. Let's get this hatch set up." In a couple of minutes, the two of them had connected both ships, and waited for the crew of the Nebuchadnezzar to enter, as it was tradition for the visiting ship to come first. Lewar was nervous. She hoped her voice wouldn't waver when she introduced herself to the legendary Morpheus. She noticed how the others were acting nervously as well. Paradox was jumpy, fiddling with the sleeve of his shirt. Reflex was sipping what she suspected was Zion brew, but she let him off on this occasion, and Mace was drumming her fingers on the wall in a fast rhythm like she always did when she was waiting for something, with an excited grin on her face. 

Lewar jumped when she heard the scraping of a door latch being opened, and she straightened up.

In the opened doorway stood a man in his late 30s, his bald head held firmly, and his tired eyes shone with gratitude and friendship. There were still beads of sweat on his dark skin, and he looked extremely relieved to get out of the close encounter.

"I am Captain Morpheus of the Nebuchadnezzar," he said in a deep, powerful and trusting voice.

"Glad to meet you, at last, Captain. I am Captain Lewar of the Shadow," she said, shaking his outstretched hand warmly. "Welcome aboard my ship." She walked behind her crew, putting a hand on each of their shoulders as she introduced them. "This is Paradox, our first mate, Mace, our weapons specialist, and Reflex, our operator."

"And this is my crew," said Morpheus with pride. "Trinity," he said as he passed the beautiful yet strong, pale, black haired woman. "Neo," he continued. Neo seemed uncomfortable at their awed looks, but they couldn't help it. He had kind eyes, and an aura of control, even if he was unconscious of it. "And Tank, our operator." he finished. Tank smiled a boyish grin, and Lewar couldn't help smiling back.

"We owe you guys one. I keep saying small ships make all the difference," he said with confidence that was contagious.

"Don't mention it," replied Reflex. They were going to get along fine, thought Lewar.

"Now, I hear you guys have engine problems," stated Mace in a business like voice. "I believe I can be of some service to you."

"Here, I'll show you what's wrong," offered Neo, leading Mace into the Neb and down a ladder.

"I'll show you my habitat," said Reflex, and Tank followed enthusiastically. 

"Morph- I mean, Captain Morpheus-" began Paradox

"Just Morpheus, please," he put in with a pained expression

Paradox smiled. "Ok, Morpheus, I'd like to talk to you about something, in private, if you don't mind."

"Of course not. Come to my quarters," he said, leading into the Nebuchadnezzar.

"What were you guys doing all the way out here?" Trinity asked Lewar

"Doing a job for Zion," she started, and continued to tell her about their strange discovery.

"We were wondering why there were so many weak signals around that area." Trinity commented when Lewar had finished.

Lewar was about to open her mouth, but was cut off by complicated sounds coming from the hull of the Nebuchadnezzar. She suddenly laughed.

"Sounds like Turb0 taught her well," she said sadly. Trinity looked confused. "We lost our driver, Turb0. An Agent," she painfully explained. "One of the best damn pilots in Zion."

"He must've been," said Trinity. "Even I've heard of him, and we don't get much news on the Neb. He was famous for that Hotrod of his."

"Why not much news?" asked Lewar curiously.

"The Zion Council doesn't agree with the way Morpheus acts. They don't like the way he does what needs to be done with out asking for permission first."

"They do like to told what's going on under their noses, don't they?" she laughed.

"We've noticed that," she smiled "So Morpheus usually sticks to broadcast depth and looks for potentials. Now that the Council has officially rejected Neo of any recognition, he's given up on them. He only communicates with them when he really has to."

"What happens when you go back to recharge and restock?"

"They pretend to ignore us, until they find something for us to do. At the moment, we're mapping the thin outer pipes, even though Zion wanted us to check over the larger pipes, to make sure the maps were accurate. They said the outer pipes weren't important, because only 2 ships could fit them." 

"Yours and mine," Lewar put in.

She nodded and looked around. "This looks like a fairly new ship. How did you come by it, and at so young?" The woman Lewar had considered an idol to her, an inspirational figure, was genuinely interested.

Lewar took a breath and began her tale of her past in both worlds.

---------------

"…And that the abilities of Lewar, someone who hadn't yet been freed and I would help Neo against the Agents. She specifically said fighting against the Agents. I don't know if that is important or not." Paradox finished telling Morpheus what the Oracle had told him.

"Do you have any idea who this person who is still plugged in is?" asked Morpheus with his forehead creased in thought. 

"I have a feeling it is a boy called Fear. He's 11, and was about to be contacted by Agents when I interrupted. His name inside is Tom Murric. I've been watching him on my shift. He's pretty good with a computer, but his real talent is hiding. I'm not sure if he knows he does it, but he tends to change his RSI when he really wants to. He can't change it to different faces, but to different colours. He once blended right into the shadows when he was sneaking out at night to meet some hacker friends, literally turned his face into a shade of gray so no one would spot him, unless they could see his code."

"The perfect spy," muttered Morpheus.

"Do you have any idea what abilities or qualities you and Trinity could have?"

"I'm not sure about Trinity. Mine could be Faith, or something around that, although I lost that for a moment…"

Paradox smiled. "I guess that happens when you see the person you think is going to save man-kind die. But who can blame you? You have faith in him now, and that's all that matters."

Morpheus looked at him. "I can see why the Oracle wanted you to help. You're smart, but let yourself be guided by faith, and hunches, and beliefs."

"And it's not smart to do that?"

"Not smart isn't the right word….. it's daring. Risky. It's not like it's a bad thing, to trust your instincts. With your particular gift, you have to." He sighed. "Since the destruction of Agent Smith, the other Agents have been acting oddly. They are still a great danger, but they seem to be targeting people they think could be potentials. They've started to come down hard on the top hackers, suspecting that they are beginning to know the truth."

"You mean they're starting to try to stop us from being freed, instead of attacking us afterwards?"

"Exactly. They're working on prevention, which they've never done before. It's almost as if they've stopped attacking us." He paused. "Well, not stopped. But they're a lot more defensive now. As if…."

"….they're scared," finished Paradox.

"Exactly. The appearance of the One has spooked them, and they only attack at the most important times, on the most dangerous rebels."

"They attacked us….." he said slowly, his voice thick with grief.

"Perhaps they knew what the Oracle knew. There are others who have the same ability as her, programs helping the machines. They could've been informed of you're role in future events."

"What are we meant to do, though?!" he half shouted in frustration. 

"If we knew exactly what was laid down in front of us, we would probably set it off course to avoid it. We should just follow what happens and decide when the time comes." said wisely. He'd obviously answered this kind of question before.

"Make it up as we go along?!" Paradox asked incredulously. 

"No, we have… guidelines. A vague area that we have to get to, but we are the ones who have to work out how to get there."

They sat in silence, wondering about the Oracles words, with their train of thought occasionally cut off by complicated sounds coming from the engine room, and at last, the cheers of Neo and Mace as they finally got the engine running.

"Looks like you're back in business!" smiled Paradox at Morpheus.

"I think I might accompany you back to Zion. We could use some extra supplies, and after that, we could stick together and try to accomplish this mission of ours."

"That would be up to Lewar, or course, but I'm sure she'll agree."

Neo came up to the door, shaking his head in disbelief. "I have no idea how she did it," he told them. "She rerouted the fuel lines from on engine to another, re-set the system, almost re-built the engines from the bottom up, and now it's working better than it ever has. I doubt even Dozer could do that in the space of half and hour."

Paradox smiled at how Turb0 had taught Mace. She probably knew more about the engine systems than anyone else in Zion now, with Turb0 as a teacher. "Thanks for your advice," he said to Morpheus as he walked out of the small room and into his own ship, where Trinity was still talking to Lewar, and they looked up as he approached.

"Mace fixed the engines, and Morpheus said he needs to go back to Zion to recharge anyway, so he'll come with us," he told them.

Lewar nodded. "Good. Let's get going, we have a lot to do," she turned to Trinity. "Thanks a lot."

The strong yet kind looking woman smiled at her. "Remember what I told you," she said, with a quick glance at Paradox.

"I will," she said with a mysterious smile, and shook Trinity's hand as she passed into her own ship.

"What was that about?" Paradox asked Lewar.

"Nothing you would understand," she said cryptically.

"What the hell does that mean?" he said, getting frustrated.

"Exactly what it sounds like," she grinned and walked off to the bridge.

Paradox shook his head and walked away. Of all the women in Zion, he though, I had to fall for the one who likes to mess with my head!

They detached and started their journey back home to Zion.

* * *

Ok, that wasn't one of my best chapters, but fear not! well, not that you would, but ANYWAY! I think I'll upload the next one today anyway J 

I SUCK AT WRITING!!!!! I never get around to it, damn it

EVERYONE WHO READS THIS, TELL ME!!!!! COS IF NO ONE IS, I'LL STOP WRITING!!


	6. Fear

Well, I said I'd do more tonight, cool! More chapters J 

ENJOY! 

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Chapter 6: Fear

"Are you sure you don't want me to take a bag?" asked Paradox, as they headed for the office of the geological leader in Zion. "They do weigh about 35 kg each."

"I'm fine!" she insisted, despite the growing pain in her back.

"It's your spine," he said annoyingly.

"Fine then," she gave up, trying to hide the relief flowing through he back and shoulders and she gave a bag to him. Morpheus smiled at them, and knocked on the door pointed out by the young engineer, with 'Dr Jonesfield' pinned up.

"Come in," answered a tired sounding voice. He led the three of them in to see a short man with graying hair and a lined face.

"Morpheus, good to see you!" said the short man, dusting his hands off and grasping Morpheus'.

"Good to see you too, doctor."

"Please, call me Indy, everyone does! Now, what have you got for me?"

"We found these in what used to be South Africa," informed Lewar as she tipped the precious diamonds from her heavy bag onto the table.

Indy gasped, and found it hard to speak for several minutes.

"Good God, we could do so much with these!" he shouted in glee at last. "We could… we could almost find the date!"

"I'm sure you have plenty to do," said Paradox, setting down his bag too. "We'll leave you to it." The three of them walked out of his small lab, leaving Indy doing a kind of jig around his table, and shouting out with happiness.

A day after making the delivery, Lewar led her crew back to her ship to meet the new crew member she had found. He was a young man, about 23, but had the look of a person who had been sour about almost everything in life. He was Zion Born, average height, and his light brown hair had a greasy look to it.

"This is Ransom, our new pilot," he introduced them. "This is Mace, Reflex and Paradox."

They nodded to him, but he sneered back. "Only 4 people? No wonder you needed me, a ship shouldn't be so small. My last ship had a crew of 10!"

"What ship was that?" asked Reflex

"The Makar."

Reflex nodded, but Lewar noticed a dark look on his face. 

"So let's get this thing you call a ship into the pipes." he said with the sneer still on his face. "I'm sure Zion could find you something to do with that excuse."

"Keep us informed of your progress with the boy," said Morpheus, shaking Lewar's hand. 

"We will," she replied. "Good luck with the maps, the Squiddies have been acting oddly around there."

"Keep your eye on humanity," Paradox told Neo, grinning.

"I'll do my job, you just get that kid out in one piece," smiled Neo, who had become good friends with Paradox. "I've seen your exploits inside. You're known as a madman,"

"I could second that," remarked Lewar dryly.

"When will the Neb be back in the pipes?" Mace asked Trinity.

"A couple of days, have to give her quite a bit of body work, I'd say," she answered.

The two crews shook hands, Tank and Reflex had a final drink, and wished each other luck, as they prepared for their departure from Zion. 

As they set off, Reflex set the Matrix feed to observe Fear, but it was increasingly difficult, as his abilities in the Matrix grew, and he became more aware of the world surrounding him. 

After a long 'discussion', Paradox finally talked his way into going into the Matrix and making the first contact with Fear. He was to go through a new exit, a factory, and find him in one of the usual hacker hideouts on the Internet.

Lewar gave him strict orders to stay in the factory unless something went wrong, she knew she would have to, as Paradox liked to go and pick on the agents, and now wasn't the time.

As she strapped his feet into the jacking chair, she gently squeezed his hand.

"Come back in one piece, ok?" she half asked half commanded.

"I will," he smiled. "Trust me." She hated it when people said that to her, and he knew she did.

"Go infect the other world," she said jokingly, and kissed him on the cheek when she thought no one was looking. He smiled at her, closing his eyes. She pushed the plug into the back of his head and watched as his mind was transferred into the artificial world he was born in.

----------

Paradox hooked the computer up to the power and phone lines, and started his search for Fear, finding him in a chat room disguised as an innocent site discussing sci-fi movies.

(BuLLet) u shoulda seen my hak on my boss

(indya) shit, jakass, its 11

(indya) star trek is starting

Paradox laughed to himself. '11' was a codeword for "someone new, don't talking about hacking" that was used in a small forum he used to be a member of. It seemed to have spread during his absence. These people weren't very good at being sublte, however.

(cassette) hoo r u?

(Ncoded) its ok, call 11 off, i no him

(Paradox) long time no see, dude

(Ncoded) same 2 u

(indya) so what u do @ work?

(BuLLet) got into bosses comp, fucked up the sys files 

(Fear) that's shit, you only did that for fun

(BuLLet) shit yeah!

(Fear) you ain't a real hacker, you're a script kiddy

(Fear) find a reason to hack, don't give the rest of us a bad name

Paradox was impressed. He hated those guys who hacked for the fun of it, only to piss others off and cause damage, and it appeared Fear felt the same way. They were going to get along fine.

(BuLLet) shut up, kid

(BuLLet) bet u dont know shit about comps

(Fear) i know enough to kick you out of here without ops

: BuLLet has been banned from #sci-fi010 by Fear for 2 hours :

Paradox opened a private window with Fear to talk about more important matters.

(Paradox) you feel it, don't you?

(Fear) feel what?

(Paradox) you know what

(Paradox) the mistake in this world, stuck in your mind

(Fear) what is it?

(Paradox) it is the Matrix at work

(Fear) whats the Matrix?

: Paradox has logged off at 21:39:45 :

Paradox looked at the screen in regret. He hated leaving the poor kid like that, with cryptic questions and impossible answers, but he had to. It was the only way to get a person safely out without driving them mad.

The cell phone next to him rang, and he clicked it open.

"Nice work, buddy," came Reflex's voice. "You ready to get out of there?"

"Sure, I'll-" Paradox had a familiar feeling of dread. "Shit!" he yelled as he jammed the phone into his pocket and grabbed for the guns he had insisted on loading. A shower of sparks came through the outside window, and the old fashioned phone on the table fell silent through it's first ring as the hard line was cut.

Running to the back door, he heard a strange metallic coded sound coming from outside, the sound of something being loaded. Sensing Agents only at the front of the building, he slammed through the door to find a sparkling red Ducati, his dream bike as a child. Grinning ear to ear, he jumped on and rammed the bike into action. He could hear the sound of crumpled gravel as the agents ran to him, but they were too slow. He sped off, stirring up dirt and dust all over the fine grey suits of the Agents.

BANG! The rubber of one of the tires burst as the gun of an Agent flashed.

"Shit!" he muttered as he tried to regain control of the bike. "Shit, shit, shit!"

He was slowing down, and the Agents were now in an old, sleek black Ford, catching up. Paradox broke through the barrier of a multi-story parking lot, begging the bike to go faster, to get him up to the next floor.

He leapt off his bike and into a beautiful 70s Mustang. Perfect for street racing. Even better for escaping agents. 

As the engine roared into life, his hands were already manuvouring the car to the nearest down ramp. The Agents were trying to get to all the exits of the parking lot, but there were too many for them to cover with the small SWAT team they had. Reaching the ground floor, he was almost at the exit barrier when a police car blocked his way. Spinning around, he found only 3 exits to be unblocked, all at the other end of the parking lot.

Moving up the ramps, he found himself on the 4th level of the concrete construction, and he used a trick Turb0 had taught him, making doughnuts and creating so much smoke, the police cars didn't know which way he would head. Racing to the other end of the building, he found the ramps down.

With his heart beating fast, he felt that exit to be blocked too, and Agents were moving in, surrounding him. "Damnit!" he shouted. He knew there was nothing else he could do. He slammed into reverse and backed up the ramp to the 1st floor. Making sure he had the maximum run up, he lined the car up, and shifted into gears as fast as he could, enabling the turbo, and broke through the metal barrier, flying over the Agent's barricade, and landed with a mighty shower of sparks onto the street, scratching the bottom of the car.

He inspected the damage to the front as he sped off into the night, and winced as he saw that most of the bonnet had been bent, all the lights shattered. Turb0 would've never forgiven him. He laughed out loud when he heard the confused shouts from the SWAT team, and the angry yells from the Agents.

He found himself on a deserted stretch of road, ensured that no Agents would appear, and clicked his cell back open.

"Jesus, wherever those bastards came from, it wasn't a normal part of the Matrix," came Reflex's confused voice.

"What do you mean?" Paradox asked urgently.

"I mean that those guys appeared in the code, no idea how. It's like they teleported or something."

"Damn, haven't got time to look into it now, where's the nearest phone?"

"About a mile up the road, the reception of the insurance agency."

"Thanks dude. Oh yeah, and thanks for the bike, saved my arse"

"No problem, and very nice driving, by the way, although she might not agree." Paradox could tell he was stifling laughter over Lewar's reaction to his driving.

"Thanks," he said flatly. "I'll see you there," and he drove off at breakneck speed, with the Speedo hitting 190km/h and the turbo making the engine roar with fury.

* * *

*DROOOOOOOOLS* muuuuustaaaaaaaang…….

(im a car freak)

REVIEW!!! PLEASE!! ARGH!!!!!!!!!!!


	7. Freedom

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Chapter 7: Freedom

Over the next few weeks, Lewar, Mace and Paradox jacked into the Matrix to communicate with Fear. He became more and more confused and curious and time went on, and was sometimes desperate for answers.

Lewar knew how aggravating it was as she watched Fear through the code, watched as he spent hours on the Internet searching for clues laid down by others on the same search. She had been spending almost every shift watching Fear and his hacker friends, to see how he was going, and if the Agents were getting any closer. She looked over at Paradox's still body in his jack in chair, and felt concerned for him. She knew she had no choice but to let him go inside to watch over Fear.

Since Dox's car incident, and the way the Agents just appeared into the code, all the crew had been very on edge about Fear's safety within the Matrix. It was as if they had found some sort of gateway through the Matrix, some sort of transport system. Paradox now spent hours inside the Matrix as a guard for Fear, ready to protect him if Agents came to stop him being freed. 

Ransom was yet another problem for Lewar. He was quite openly discussed as the size of the ship, believing that the bigger the better. He didn't pay heed to Lewar, only doing what Paradox said, even if all he did was repeat what Lewar had just said. It annoyed all of the crew. As much as they didn't like to admit it, though, they needed him. Lewar could feel the strain of flying constantly and occasionally jacking into the Matrix, and Reflex had to keep an eye on the Matrix when he was awake. Ransom was almost as good a pilot as Turb0 had been, but not nearly as good a person.

Staring at the screen of code rushing down, she noticed something that made her laugh out loud. Fear was actually visiting the site she'd made during her search for answers! She had put down all the names she'd known, all the locations, sites, information and clues she'd had found, just incase someone else had more information, or if that information would come in handy to anyone else. It was a foolish attempt, she had been unplugged about 4 weeks after putting the site up, and she'd barley had any hits, but during her absence, she'd had thousands! Opening up a Matrix Internet feed in one of the other screens, she realized that the guest book had many people signed, including a few names she knew in the real world, people who had been freed over the years. Lewar was quite amazed. Who'd of thought her site would actually come in handy for anyone?!

He was becoming more aware, she noted as scanned around the code for the position of Paradox. They should be able to unplug him in the next week, and she had full confidence that Fear would take the red pill. It suddenly struck her as odd how casually she planned out changing this young boy's life. He would never be the same. He wouldn't have the chance to say goodbye to his friends, his family, his friends on the Internet. They would be the ones to take him away from all that.

--------------

Paradox started to get up from their morning meal of slop as Lewar came in and sat down, looking tired.

"You ok, Cap'n?" asked Reflex as he finished of his breakfast.

"Yeah," she answered wearily. "Just finished working everything out for today."

"What's happening today?" Paradox asked

"We're getting him out," she stated in a business like way.

"Ok, I'll get everything ready then," said Reflex as he jumped up and bounded out of the room towards the Core.

"He has way too much energy," muttered Lewar.

"You alright?" Paradox said sincerely

"Yeah, yeah, just been a bit worried, that's all. And a bit nervous. We've never unplugged anyone before."

"Everything'll go to plan," he said confidently. "The Oracle said we needed him, so fate can't afford to let anything go wrong."

"Well, you better get to work then," she half suggested. Paradox didn't want to test her patience today and walked out, helping Mace get the extra room ready for Fear's arrival.

Paradox gave Lewar's hand a good luck squeeze from his docking chair as he was about to be jacked in. He and Mace were being loaded into a street not far from where they would pick Fear up, while Lewar would go straight to the old phone company building where the choice would take place, as well as all the equipment needed. As he closed his eyes to the real world and opened them to a totally white existence, he felt the addition of guns and Mace. He smiled at Mace, and then shouted up into nothingness "Hey, we could use a ride here!". Reflex sometimes forgot to add things, and occasionally needed a bit of a prompt.

Paradox noticed Mace smile sadly as the familiar Hotrod materialized, and he didn't know if that was just habit of Reflex, or a tribute, or just trying to hold on to such a great vehicle. 

"Here we go," Mace remarked as the white surroundings dissolved into buildings and streets, and they felt their feet touch the ground their mind was telling them was under them.

As the Matrix was completed, Paradox took out his phone, and called the cell they slipped to Fear. It rang for a few seconds before it was answered by an young hesitant voice.

"He-hello?"

"You said you wanted to end the riddle, stop the questions," Paradox stated in a flat voice.

"Yeah…"

"Then come to Bell and Arden, I'll be waiting for you in flames." He hung up before Fear could answer, and climbed into the car. As Mace drove, Paradox felt sorry for Fear. He had led the poor kid around by the nose with riddles and answering questions with questions. They pulled up to the intercession, and waited for about a minute, until Fear seemed to materialize from the darkness and look around. He suddenly spotted the classic car, and seemed to understand what Paradox had meant, judging by the body art of flames licking at the tires.

Paradox opened the door for him, saying "Come in, Fear." He came forward, and stepped inside, looking around nervously.

"You're Paradox, aren't you?"

"Yes."

"You're still wanted, you know," the young boy warned. "There've been big guys in suits asking around, showing pictures, tracing the net for you."

Paradox glanced at Mace, who shrugged. "I was wondering when they were going to start doing that," she said.

"Who are they?" Fear asked.

"They are the ones trying to keep us from the truth," answered Paradox.

They were silent for the rest of the trip, but Paradox knew that Fear was bursting with questions that couldn't be answered with words.

"We're here," said Mace as she stopped the car. Paradox lead Fear up the starts of the dark building, and stopped when they reached the door of what used to be the head office.

"Here it is," he said. "Think hard, be honest, and make your choices well."

"Here is what?" Fear asked. "What choices?" But Paradox had already opened the door and showed him inside, to where Lewar was waiting.

"Good luck," he said as he walked through the door on the other side of the room, leaving a very nervous and apprehensive Fear.

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Fear looked around the room. There was a desk, holding nothing but a glass of water. Sitting in one of the chairs was a young woman, probably in her early twenties. She had flaming red hair tied up, and as she took of her sunglasses, Fear noticed she had rich blue eyes. He also thought he saw a gun inside her coat, be he couldn't be sure.

"Sit down," she motioned to the other chair, and he sank into it. She looked at him over the desk as the twirled a sliver tube in her fingers. "My name is Lewar. We've been looking for you for a while, Fear."

"You've been looking for me?!" he thought to himself, but stayed silent.

"You know why you're here, don't you?" Fear nodded. "You're not able to say what you know and feel, but you are sure what you feel is true." 

Fear nodded again. He was trying not to get too excited. Hopefully, very soon he'd get all his riddles and theories answered. He had gone over every book on philosophy he had ever read, and some he hadn't. Fear was one of the very lucky people who could absorb knowledge at an extreme rate, understanding in minutes what took some people months. He had just finished high school, and was about to start University, at the age where most children only start their secondary education. He was known as a child genius.

"What you feel," Lewar continued, "is what we call the Matrix."

He leaned forward in his chair. "What is the Matrix?"

"The Matrix is everywhere you look, everything you touch. It lies to your senses, and shields the truth."

"What truth?"

"That all that you know is a lie,"

Those words hit him like a blow to the face. He prided himself on his knowledge, on not being ignorant or average.

"The only way to fully understand what the Matrix is, is to see it. But to do that, you'll have to risk everything."

Fear's mind was racing. What did all of this mean? Lewar took the top of the metal tube and emptied it's contents onto her hand.

"This is the point of no return," she told him. "What you choose now will define the rest of your life." She showed him a small blue capsule. "If you take the blue pill, you'll keep your currant life, believing what you want." She showed him a similar pill, but red. "If you take the red pill, your new life will begin, and I will show you the truth."

Fear hesitated. His mind was screaming 'blue', but his heart was telling him 'red'. "Why pills?" he thought. "Is this some kind of druggy gang? Show me the truth… truth about what? About me? About what I can do? Give up this life…. No one in this life for me anyway…" His curiosity took control of him as he stretched out and took the red pill from Lewar's hand, swallowing it uncomfortably. 

Lewar smiled and put her sunglasses back on. "Come with me," she said, moving towards the door behind the desk. He followed her in, feeling a little nauseous.

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YAAAY!!! REVIEWS!!! *bounces up and down, then hits her head on the ceiling and stops* well that was fun, wasn't it? Longer chapters coming up (I know they're long to begin with, sorry bout that) cos now they'll have Lewar, Paradox AND Fear. 

now I know I can't spell AT ALL so sorry about all the terrible spelling mistakes, but at least you have a crappy little story to keep you busy J 

Keep them reviews coming, dudes!!!!! (and dudettes, if you would rather be called that :P )

*starts bouncing, only to hit the roof again* fast learner, aren't I?


	8. Welcome to truth

A/N: I know I suck, havn't updated for a while, but eh, at least I got around to it ;) Still love to see some more reviews, so PLEASE keep em comin

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Chapter 8: Welcome to truth

Lewar felt extremely relieved as she nodded to Dox and Mace, and showed Fear to a wooden chair. She had been quite certain that we would take the red pill, but not definite. Paradox started attaching heart and brain monitors onto the young boy, and Mace was keying in his physical status.

"The red pill is part of a tracking program," Lewar explained. "It alters your signals so we can find your true location."

"My true location? Where else am I?!" Fear said, starting to panic.

"You know that feeling that your dreams are more real than when you're awake?" asked Paradox. Fear nodded. "Well, you're about to wake up."

Fear looked as if he was about to faint when he seemed to see something on the floor that none of them could see. He watched it move towards him, and then acted as if to stop whatever it was from covering him, like a shadow blanketing him mind.

"It's.....it's dark.....heavy..." he mumbled as he struggled with his invisible enemy.

"His mind activity is going crazy," reported Mace. "His heart is going too fast."

Lewar flicked open her phone in urgency. She would not loose him, not when they were so close. "Reflex, do you have a location?"

"Not exact, but we have a vague area, Ransom is moving towards it as we speak,"

"He's starting to loosing consciousness!" shouted Paradox.

"Got him!" came Reflex's triumphant cry, as the hard line phone began to ring.

"Release him!" Lewar yelled, as Fear threw back his head in pain and started to jerk. With a strange faint green blur, his residual self-image disappeared, the wires connected to him falling to the ground.

"Let's go," Lewar commanded. She picked up the ringing phone and gave it to Mace, who was followed by Paradox.

Lewar put the phone back on the hook, and then picked it back up, placing her back into the real world. She woke up in a rapidly moving ship as Ransom flew towards the sewer base where Fear would come out. It was vital they got there as soon as possible because those just unplugged were always horribly weak, and couldn't support themselves in the foul water for long. They rushed through pipes and came out at the opening just as there was a splash of Fear landing.

"Open the hatch," Lewar shouted and for once, Ransom actually did something she had ordered. The steel door at the bottom of the ship opened and a robotic arm came down, grabbing Fear and bringing him up. When the metal harness had pulled the boy up, Mace covered him with a blanket, and he blacked out completely. 

Lewar spent the next few days in the infirmary, tending to Fear. The boy wasn't that strong in the Matrix, and inside the real world he was as weak as a newly born kitten. He was in a coma for week until he finally awoke, to everyone's great relief.

He barely moved, but Lewar noticed immediately, as he'd looked exactly the same for days, so the slightest change was obvious.

"Am I dreaming," he mumbled wearily as he squinted. 

"No, you're more awake then you've ever been," said Lewar, quickly turning the light above them off.

"What are you doing to me?" he whispered, noticing the needles, drips and plugs coming out of him.

"We're strengthening your body. You haven't moved your whole life, so they're a little rusty," she smiled at him, but he had already gone back unconscious.

------------

It took Fear a week to recover fully from being unplugged. Because he was so young, he adapted quickly to the concept that the Matrix wasn't real, but it certainly shook him. Nearly everything he had known, and he had known a lot, turned out to be a lie, and that's hard to get over. Reflex started training him straight away, and he absorbed the programs at an amazing rate. What usually took an hour took about 20 minutes, and his brain flew through all the combat, system, ability and code programs. 

He seemed a little awkward around the much older crew, but that didn't stop him from spending a lot of time with Paradox, who was unofficially his instructor. They spent a lot of their time in the Construct, training Fear's mind. After two days on the combat and weapons training programs. 

"You're good," remarked Paradox after sparing with him one day. 

"Only good?" joked Fear. "After that victory, I'd say I'd have to rank a very good." It was true, Fear had beaten Dox, knocking him off his feat, turning being smaller than him into an advantage. 

"Ok, you're very good. In fact, I'd say you're ready for the Jump Program." Paradox looked up. "Reflex, if you would?"

The ground beneath them disappeared and they couldn't tell if they were falling, or if the skyscraper was coming up towards them. Either way, they were soon standing on the roof of a city building. 

"This is impossible for a confined mind," Paradox told Fear. "But to a free mind, it comes naturally." He then turned and leaped over the massive gap, landing easily on roof over the road. He turned and watched Fear, who closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and ran towards the gap. He didn't seem to use strength when he jumped, but he had a massive look of concentration. What amazed Paradox was that he didn't start to fall, but landed with a roll next to him. Fear looked surpassed at his own success, but not as much as Paradox. 

"Excellent! Good job," Paradox congratulated him. "Let's turn in, you'll be tired when you get out, trust me."

They opened their eyes to the real world, and Fear was almost panting. "You're right," he gasped. "That really takes it out of you."

"You'll get used to it. Go and have a rest in your room, you'll feel much better." Fear walked off, and Paradox went straight to the others, who had been watching the screens. 

"I don't believe it!" Reflex burst out. "That kid is amazing, he kicked your ass!"

"He made the jump," said Mace.

"No one has ever made the first jump," said Lewar. "Not even Neo did."

"He got lucky," stated Ransom. "It's impossible to make the first jump."

"Nothing's impossible in there," argued Paradox. 

"Obviously, as Fear just did it," backed up Reflex.

"He's just a kid, he's nothing special," Ransom shot back, and he walked away, muttering something about "beginner's luck".

"What does it mean?" asked Reflex to no one in particular.

"I dunno," said Paradox. "Maybe we should ask..." he trailed off.

"Morpheus," Lewar completed his sentence.

-------------

"How long have you been out?" Fear asked Paradox on his second week on the ship.

"About 6 or 7 years," he answered over their evening meal. "But I've been on this ship for 5." 

"You spent that long eating nothing but this?" joked Fear, inticating to the bowl of slop he was eating. He still wasn't used to eating it. The heavy goo had no taste, and didn't satisfy the need for real, solid food.

"You get used to it." Reflex told him. "Just wait until you get you Zion, there you'll eat real food there." 

"Lewar, incoming message from another ship!" Ransom shouted from the Core. Fear's captain got up to investigate, and returned after a few minutes, smiling.

"That was the Neb, they've got some information for us, and they'll be docking before the day is out."

"Good," said Paradox with a smile. "Time to get things done,"

"The Neb? You mean the Nebuchadnezzar?!" Fear asked excitedly. He had heard a lot about it during his training in the history of Zion, and he already thought of it's crew as heros. Of course, the official Zion history didn't have any mention of the One, but the ones written by the crew gave the whole story. And if Fear was understanding correctly, the One would be docking with them.

"Yeah, we're going to be helping them with a mission to destroy the Agents," Reflex said, sounding almost as excited as Fear. 

Ransom walked in. "Reflex, could you take over? I feel like some breakfast."

"Yeah, sure." The tall operator replied and walked out, bouncing on the balls of his feet.

"Do they have a plan for how we're going to be doing this?" Mace asked.

"No, that's one of the reason's they're docking with us instead of just meeting us inside," the Captain answered "So we can formulate one."

"Do you mind terribly if I speak my mind, Captain?" said Ransom in his usual sneer. 

"Not really, as long as it isn't too insulting." She seemed calm, but Fear could tell she was ready for an argument.

"I think you're throwing your lives away. There never will be a One, and this Neo certainly isn't. When you jack in, you won't be jacking back out. I understand Morpheus' is crazy, but I'd rather not work on a ship that believes in that idiot as well."

"Well, I'm sorry, Ransom, but it looks like you are. We're going in to do what we have to, to try to fight for Zion, and to do what we can. If that means we're killed, then at least we died for a cause." Lewar was really heated up now. Fear could tell this was going to be interesting.

"Then what am I supposed to do when you get overwhelmed by Agents, and Neo realises that he can't save you? When Tank sends you and his crew and his precious One into the clutches of the machines? I'm not just going to watch him kill you all."

"I'm not going to tell you what to believe," Lewar said in a strong voice. "But if you stop anyone from doing their job, from doing what they've chosen to do, then I will have no choice but to relieve you from duty and report you to Zion. Zion doesn't have many laws, but one of them is not to interfear with a mission, whether you're an operator or you jack in. What you believe we should do is exactly that, your belief. But if you go against my order, then you'll be striped of your profesion and will be returned to Zion. Reflex and I would take over your duties."

"I think I'd like to be returned to Zion more than I want to be held responcible for the deaths of my crew, because I didn't stop them going to their deaths. I won't be blamed for your stupidity, or their stupidity." With that, he walked out of the room to his quarters, his 'lunch' forgotten on the table.

Lewar let out a breath that sounded half in relief, half in frustraition. "Come on," she said at last. "Let's get the ship ready for docking."

A/N: mwahahaha, EVIL RANSOM! well, maybe not evil, just ANNOYING. almost as annoying as me! HAZZAR! farak, it's 2.20am!!! go to sleep, Torak, go to sleeeeeep….

Everyone: NO! stay awake and keep writing

Torak: If you say so……….

Whip: *crack*

Torak: OW! ok, ok, chapter 9…


	9. Enter The Matrix

A/N: You already know I suck at getting chapters in on time, so read, review, flame, leave, worship (if you're REALLY drunk..) and then find a better story on Zion Mainframe! YAY!

Chapter 9: Enter the Matrix

"We have a bit of information for you," Morpheus told the crew of the Shadow as the two ships gathered in the Mess Hall. Well, most of the crew, thought Paradox. The absence of Ransom was obviously due to Neo. Dox was a little worried that Ransom saw Neo as some kind of burden that he seemed to think could ruin the mission. Ransom took so much pride in that he had rarely lead his crew into a disaster that he might take drastic and un-necessary action, perhaps against the crew of either ships, to Neo himself, or to himself, if it stopped his career being what he called 'tainted'. He snapped back to the present situation as Morpheus continued to speak.

"We think we've found away to get ourselves into the operation programs of the Matrix, and perhaps destroy some of the basic system programs, including the Agents."

"So the Oracle really did mean what she said…" murmured Lewar.

"The only way to access the Machine Mainframe is in an office building controlled by AI and the military under their control. The building sustained heavy damage in an attack launched by my crew about a month ago, so security will be disorganised. We hope to release a virus into the Matrix that will open a single path to the defense systems of the Machines, and hopefully we'll be able to hack in and out fast enough to delete the Agent systems and get out before the Matrix starts glitching too much."

Paradox looked around at the reactions of his friends. Reflex let out a low whistle which stated his surprise in such a daring and open attack. Fear looked nervous, he hadn't entered the Matrix yet, he had only just completed his training. Mace looked determined as ever about completing the mission, as she did with most parts of her work. She knew that she'd have to write the virus, and she was perfectly capable. Lewar looked a little apprehensive, but almost looked excited. They hadn't done much, and she had been quite keen to make an attack soon. She didn't like the idea of sitting and waiting too much.

At last, someone spoke. 

"Well," Lewar started, "What's your plan?"

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Paradox and Lewar stepped through the revolving doors of the office building. The lobby had scaffolds and hardware everywhere, and signs of recent major damage. In front of them, Neo and Trinity looked around at the security scanning equipment in recollection. In unison, they brought out their guns and shot the life out of it. The Dozing security guards leapt to their feet and the gun shots, but was ready for them, knocking 1 into a pillar, Lewar covering him with a knife she had taken right out of the hand of another guard. Looking around at the carnage, the four of them walked towards the emergency stairs entrance. It looked like the elevator shaft was still ruined from some kind of explosion, so that was useless. Just before he entered the staircase, Paradox called Morpheus on his cell.

"Morpheus, the lobby is clear. Tell us when you've found the port, we'll try to keep all activity away from you."

"Got it," he answered and the phone clicked. As Paradox followed Lewar up the stairs, he heard the sound of 3 pairs of heavy boots across the marble floor.

--------------

Fear was terrified. It was the first time he'd been inside the Matrix since he'd been unplugged. Mace and Morpheus followed behind him as he weaved through the dark, off limits corridors of the AI controlled sky scraper. Fear was scouting ahead, camouflaged, on the look out for any enemies. Morpheus followed him silently, his guns raised and loaded. Mace stepped quietly behind, carrying a briefcase of wires and a laptop. He knew how much depended on his ability to stay hidden, and find the port where Mace was to attach the laptop into the network, and then have Morpheus crack in. Fear remembered that the crews of both ships had agreed that the tall man was the best for the job, as every computer hacker and cracker had heard of him and looked up to him, including many of those now unplugged.

Looking through each room and corridor for the small port, that was probably hidden, he heard gun fire a few floors above him.

"Jesus," Mace swore softly.

Morpheus' body became more tense than it was. "We don't have much time."

The three of them moved with purpose, searching franticly through the semi-darkness. Suddenly, Fear swore he saw a metallic ring around a small dot in a wall of an innocent seeming office. Moving closer to investigate, he held in an urge to yell out with glee. Instead he motioned to Morpheus and Mace to come, and whispered "This is it,"

"Good work," Morpheus murmured as he took out his phone and Mace opened her case and connected the small computer into the massive network. 

"Paradox, we've found it, office 283 on the 28th floor." Morpheus spoke into the phone and then hung up.

"I just hope this thing can take so much information," Mace said in a matter of fact voice. Morpheus and Fear looked at each other in a brief moment of anxiety, as they realized they may have over looked that.

"It will work," he reassured the young boy.

"Morpheus, it's all up to you now," Mace told him as she moved away from the keyboard. Morpheus took of his sunglasses and stared intently into the screen, his fingers making a constant 'wrrrr' on the soft keys of the notebook. Mace stood in the doorframe watching for anyone, and Fear waited at the end of the corridor, and melted in with the wall.

More gunfire rang out suddenly, making Fear jump out of fright. Recovering, he realized it had been on the same floor as they were on. Running back to Mace, he found her as jumpy as he was. She had obviously realized the same thing. Behind them, Morpheus had barely moved from his position at the desk, sweat occasionally appearing on his hands.

---------

They were getting too close. Much too close. The security down stairs had been amazingly lax, but the upper floors were crawling with security personnel. Some of them had gotten onto their radio, calling for back up, so now there was a SWAT team and the occasional Agent to deal with.

Things weren't going as Lewar had planned.

Neo had been separated, most of the Agent attacks had been based on him, so he led them away from Trinity, Lewar and Paradox. They weren't that much better off though. They hadn't been overwhelmed, but had occasionally been forced to retreat to another area. 

Now, though, they were in trouble.

The phone call Morpheus had made to Paradox to tell him where they were had unfortunately been tracked. There was a risk of that, but it had to have been taken. Now the task forces had been sent to where Morpheus was completing his hack, and Paradox, Lewar and Trinity were trying to head them off. It wasn't easy. Although the three of them had far superior skills, the sheer number of security and SWAT officers was causing a problem, and the rebels were starting to run out of bullets. 

Lewar moved towards another opponent. The man raised his gun in the narrow corridor, only to have it smacked out of his hands and into his face, and was then shot in the back with it. Turning with the automatic, she shot down another two men coming towards her, and jumped high into the air to take on the third, jumping over him and punching him in the neck, paralyzing him.

Thoughts of these people struck into her, about their families and friends, and she started to loose her focus. A blow to the side of her head was the consequence. Pushing such dangerous thoughts aside, she recovered quickly and tripped the offending guard, kicking him against a wall and leaving him unconscious. There was a time for emotion, and it wasn't now. Something inside her twanged, and she looked up, and found that Paradox wasn't near her. Something was wrong, very wrong, something was bad. Somehow she knew. Paradox, he was in trouble. An agent, there was an agent. 

She didn't know how she did it, she just did. In desperation, she commanded herself to be near him, to move in her mind. She knew that the location that was printed in her code was able to be bent, like almost all other rules in the Matrix. Just like how Fear was able to manipulate his own code. She felt an impossible transition from the hall into the room above, and found Paradox fighting with his last ounces of strength against an Agent, who was backing him into a wall. Lewar whipped out her last hand gun and shot at the Agent before he knew she was there. Even as the shell it was using was about to die, the Agent still struggled to attack her, to kill her, but before he could, the strength of the body gave in, and all that remained was the bullet riddled corpse of a police officer.

Lewar, however, didn't care at all about a dead body. In fact, the idea that more Agents could be coming completely slipped her mind. Paradox looked up, and his face lit up with surprise and relief as she moved straight to Paradox and wrapped her arms around him, then kissed him quickly.

"Come on, we have to move. Are you okay?" she asked as she helped him up.

"Yeah, just tired… I'll be fine. How did you do that!?"

"I don't know… I just did. I…" She was broken off by gunshots in the floor below. "Shit. Lets go. Can you walk?"

"Yeah, but we'll have to run." More gunfire, and a look of worry crossed Paradox's face, and they ran down the stairs towards where Morpheus was still cringing over the computer.

* * *

A/N: *sings* I suck, I suck, I suck, I'm no good I suck I suck! everybody sing! Come on, people, it's fun!

Ok, I got a bit to say to my REVIEWERS, WOOOOOHO!!!

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Protectress of Dalidon: Nice name, by the way. Rightio. When did I say they'd been in the resistance for 2 years?! Lewar was 13 when she was unplugged, and now she's 20. She built the ship, so why wouldn't she be captain? Sorry bout the missunderstanding, didn't mean to say that the Oracle was a program, I ment that AI had made programs with the same abilities as her, and that they helped the AI. Probably worded it badly, I do that. "Can you get to South Africa from the sewer systems of America?" Sorry, I just really don't like the idea of Zion being in America, we have NO idea of it's location, so no one knows where it is except for the Wachowski brothers. I personally think it's in Europe, but that's just my theory. Anyway, thanks for the reviews, I know they aren't flames, and thanks for the corrections!!! I am USELESS at spelling and grammar, I just like to put my ideas on paper. And when did I say I wasn't writing a Mary Sue? I'm a bad writer as it is =P

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Thecallingrule: Hey, you can write better than me!! I read your story, keep going dude!! You can't just leave it there, that's just plain mean :P

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Metamorpheus: Cool name, dude =D Glad you read it, been meaning to show you. Keep going with your story, tis coooool!!!! YAY FOR YOU!

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Agent_Diva: Yes ma'am!

Hey guys, guess what? I'VE STARTED WRITING CHAPTER 10!!! I am so damn crappy… Sorry, I'm quite an inconsistant writer, and I get BIG writers's block. I suck. I already said that, didn't I? Well, since as I bounce again I'll probably hit my head, I won't. Instead, I'll tip my hat to you all that are reading this, and chapter 10 might even come before April! If you're lucky, that is. I need a title for the next chapter…

LOOK, A LEPRECHAUN! No , wait, that's just a mirror. So long, mateys, I hope you enjoyed this

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